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The death of George Floyd, an unarmed Black man, sparked widespread protests all over the US, calling for an end to police brutality and reigniting the Black Lives Matter movement that reached the world. Following the recent sentencing given to Derek Chauvin, a now-former police officer that killed Floyd, President Joe Biden weighed in on the result.
Last week, Biden commented on the reports revealing that the judge sentenced Chauvin to 22.5 years in prison. Chauvin was tried back in April and pleaded guilty to three charges of second-degree murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter. Chauvin knelt on Floyd’s neck for nine minutes, with video footage spreading over social media.
“I don’t know all the circumstances that were considered but it seems to me, under the guidelines, that seems to be appropriate,” Biden said in the Oval Office during his meeting with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani.
Chauvin is expected to serve around 15 years or two-thirds of his prison sentence as his attorneys seek to appeal the verdict.
During the trial back in April, where Chauvin pleaded guilty, Biden said it was a step forward. “Let’s also be clear that such a verdict is also much too rare. For so many people, it seems like it took a unique and extraordinary convergence of factors: a brave young woman with a smartphone camera; a crowd that was traumatized -- traumatized witnesses; a murder that lasts almost 10 minutes in broad daylight, for, ultimately, the whole world to see; officers standing up and testifying against a fellow officer instead of just closing ranks, which should be commended; a jury who heard the evidence, carried out their civic duty in the midst of an extraordinary moment, under extraordinary pressure,” said Biden.
Meanwhile, the 2020 Summer Olympics, with Japan as its host, will take place this year following its postponement due to the pandemic. Biden is not likely to attend the sporting event, according to a regional news outlet Yomiuri Shimbun via Hindustan Times over the weekend. Instead, first lady Dr. Jill Biden may be making the trip on her own.
Japan is already set to host Dr. Biden for the opening ceremony on July 23, with a possible meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga afterward.
